


Not Your Average Fairy Tale

by Avidreader6



Series: Imagine Clint/Coulson [7]
Category: Faerie Folklore, The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Adult Clint, Alternate Universe - Fae, Coulson's Moving Cabin, Fae & Fairies, Faery Coulson, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Kid Clint Barton, M/M, Major Character Injury, Phil watching over Clint, Sidhe, Teen Clint Barton, mercenary Clint, soul mates
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-15
Updated: 2017-08-15
Packaged: 2018-12-15 22:36:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11815584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Avidreader6/pseuds/Avidreader6
Summary: Fill for the ImagineClintCoulson prompt:One of them is of the aes sídhe and falls in love with the other, who is a mortal man.





	1. Five Years Old

Centuries ago, the sidhe known as Phil Coulson was a simple Ghillie Dhu residing in Gairloch watching over the children of the farmer and lairds. Living in his simple cottage amongst the birch trees, Phil had tried his best to be a guiding hand when the children needed it and a protector for them when it was required. 

As time passed, however, metal and machines began to come to Phil’s lands. He tried to live alongside this progress, but it was challenging and the iron drained much of Phil’s power causing him to begin aging and even the simplest of magics were hard to accomplish. After a few years, he found it more and more difficult to stay hidden and after he’d been found by the people of the loch, he was forced to leave his homeland. 

He traveled around the world a bit until settling down on a new continent brimming with promise. Metal and machinery soon encroached there too, but Phil still had space and he learned to adapt and live alongside some of these new machines (though he still preferred to live as simply as possible himself)

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Phil came back from his patrol of the woods to the sounds of a child crying. When he’d left that afternoon, the two children who played near the edge of his woods had been laughing and chasing each other and Phil had felt confident leaving them for a bit. It was his job to watch over the children who came close to his home (he often saw these two nearby investigating the trees) and seeing the bright smiles on the two boys’ faces had filled Phil with warmth and a little bit of extra power. 

Now that the sun had gone down and the stars were coming out, Phil was on his way to his small cottage and the night was quiet except for the quiet sniffles coming from the space between two trees near the corner of his land. His cottage being found meant he was going to have to move again, but first he could do what he was called to do and help this child.

“Hello? Little one? Are you okay?” Phil tried to keep his voice soft and soothing, but it was difficult. The last time people had found his cottage, he’d been forced to flee and leave his homeland behind.

“Not s’posed to talk to strangers.” The voice was quiet and trembling and every instinct Phil had as a fae was screaming to take the child home since his parents and brother were clearly useless.

Instead, Phil took a seat with his back to the two trees and looked up at the sky. “That is very true. Talking to strangers can be very dangerous. My name is Phil, and since you found my house I wanted to make sure you were not lost.”

A blond head peeked out from the space between the trees. “I know you. You helped when I fell down.”

Phil smiled. “That I did. You were chasing your big brother and tripped.”

A small body crawled out from between the trees and stood in front of Phil, blue eyes studying and assessing him. “I’m Clint.”

“Nice to meet you, Clint. Would you like some help getting home?”

Clint pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and looked scared. “Dunno. Dad’s gonna be mad. Can I stay with you?” 

Scooping Clint up, Phil set him on his hip and started walking. He’d heard the boy’s father yelling at night and he wished he could keep Clint with him, but it just wasn’t possible. “I think they’ll be glad you’re home safe and sound.”

As they walked, Phil just let Clint babble on about life as a 5-year-old in Iowa and while Clint did not mention a lot about his family, what he did say concerned Phil quite a bit.

When they were close to Clint’s home, Phil felt the boy tense in his arms and tighten his grip. Phil rubbed his back and tried to calm him down. “It’s alright, Clint. Look, you’re home. Everything is going to be okay.”

Clint started to cry again and Phil’s heart broke a little. “It’s not okay. Dad’s gonna be mad and throw things and hurt mama and I don’t want it. Please don’t make me go, Mr. Phil, please!”

Phil rubbed Clint’s back some more until Clint quieted down. Using a bit of glamour, Phil walked into the house and silently took Clint to his room. “It’s okay, Clint. See? No yelling, no throwing. Just your nice warm bed.” Phil picked up a soft, worn plush bird and handed it to Clint. “Look at this, little bird, your friend has missed you and he’s so glad you’re back. I think he needs a hug, what do you think?”

Clint hugged the bird close to his chest and yawned. His eyes started to droop closed and Phil breathed a sigh of relief. He could feel his glamour fading already and if he had to deal with any more tears, he wasn’t sure he’d be able to get out without trouble. He laid Clint down on his bed and covered him with the blanket, humming a lullaby as he tucked him in. 

Letting the glamour drop, Phil left the house and used just a small bit more of his power to alter the parents’ memories about Clint being missing. 

Exhausted, Phil walked into town and found a payphone. He made a quick call to Child Protective Services and put some magic into his suggestion that the Bartons should get a visit. By the time he hung up the phone, Phil could feel the pull of the woods calling him home. Plodding slowly into the woods, Phil hoped, that soon, Clint would find a family who could love him the way he deserved.


	2. Thirteen Years Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 13 years later and Phil finds himself at the circus.

After making sure Clint and his brother had been safely removed from the Barton household, Phil had packed up his things and traveled around the country a bit looking for a new forest. He found he didn’t like the noise of the Northeast and the South was far too hot and had far too few trees. 

Two years later, Phil found a nice dense forest in northern Wisconsin and he used the freshness of the soil and the power of the trees to build himself a new cottage. 

Phil liked it in Wisconsin. It was quiet and he was able to watch over the children of the nearby town with ease. He had a few visitors from the homelands and after several reassurances that he was happy and some of his fresh baked scones, he was able to send them on their way. 

The summer of his eleventh year there had been a hot and sticky one, and by the time August rolled around, even Phil was ready for it to be over. He was napping in the shade of one of a large maple trying to cool off when he was woken by the sounds of trucks. 

Phil walked to the road and watched the trucks and caravans drive by all sporting “Carson’s Circus” along the side. 

As he walked home that evening, Phil found himself unable to get the circus off his mind. When he arrived at his cottage he decided he might as well pay a visit after they’d set up. There were sure to be plenty of kids there and more than likely, one or two who would need his help.

Phil passed by colorful posters advertising each of the acts and found himself staring at the poster for the Amazing Hawkeye. There was something familiar about the figure dressed in purple on the poster and as he checked the showtimes below, Phil decided he might as well see this amazing marksman in person. 

Phil chose a seat near the entrance and sat down to wait for the show to begin. As the tent filled, the lights started to dim and the ringmaster came out. “Ladies and Gentlemen! You are about to witness the superior sharp shooting of our two incredible archers. Watch Trickshot and Hawkeye hit every bullseye! They never miss!”

The act began and Phil’s eyes quickly moved over the older of the pair to land on Hawkeye. Phil watched him move and was entranced at the strength in his arms and the way the purple costume, which would have been tacky on anyone else, seemed to catch the light and highlight the strength of the archer. Hawkeye hit target after target and made it seem completely effortless. By the end of the act when he shot arrow after arrow through a flaming ring to encircle the bullseye, Phil was completely entranced and couldn’t take his eyes off him. 

At the end of the act, the pair took a bow and as the tent emptied, Phil left as well, intending to go home and let himself dream of the handsome archer. He had chosen to slip out the back, using a slight glamor to go unseen when he heard raised voices. 

“The job is tonight, Barton. Either your brother gets with the program or we’re going to have to get rid of him. He knows too much.” 

Phil stopped in his tracks hearing that name. It couldn’t be the same Barton. There was no way it was the same Barton. Many people had to have that last name. Edging closer to the voices, Phil listened for more. 

“Clint’ll cooperate. I’ll make him see reason. He’ll understand when I tell him about how big the score is. Don’t worry, Trick.” 

Anger rising in his gut, Phil wanted to go in there and tear those two apart. He thought he’d left Clint in good hands, but now it was obvious why they were meeting again. Clint needed someone who actually cared. Calling on his magic, Phil used it to track Clint down. 

His magic led him an old camper and Clint was sitting outside on a log dismantling his bow. Phil stopped and just watched him for a minute, completely in awe of how Clint went over every last inch of the bow. 

“I know someone’s over there, and I swear to God, if you’re tryin’ to scare me again, Barney, I’ll shoot you.”

Phil chuckled and stepped into the light. “I’m not your brother. Just a man with a warning. You need to leave here, something bad is going down and your brother is going to try and coerce you into doing something you shouldn’t.”

Before he could leave, Phil heard Clint whisper. “You’re real.” 

Phil paused and tilted his head. “What?”

“I knew it! Barney said I was making shit up, but I wasn’t. I remember you. You took me home after I’d gotten lost. It was right before the cops showed up and stuck us in foster care. You my guardian angel or something?” 

“Or something, indeed. You need to leave, Clint. This place is no good for you.”

Clint scoffed. “And go where? In case you hadn’t noticed, I’m not exactly flush with cash. And I can’t leave my brother. He needs me.”

Heart hurting, Phil took a step closer and knelt in front of Clint. “Your brother does not have your best interests at heart. He’s only looking for a quick score. If you go through with this, Clint, it will end badly. I don’t know why we have found each other again, but I cannot ignore that we have. Clearly, I did not help you enough the last time.”

“Why does it matter to you, anyway?” Clint stood and started to pace. “You’re just some random guy! We met once when I was a kid. That’s it!”

Standing himself, Phil tried to reach out to Clint. “Because for whatever reason, the fates have decided we needed to meet again. I did not complete my duty to you last time. My job is to safeguard children, I thought I had done that when I called the authorities, but it must not have-”

“You’re the reason we were put in the system?” Clint’s voice was low and almost a growl. “How could you do that?! My dad was shit, but do you have any idea how it feels to get passed from house to house? That’s why we ran! At least here, I can do something! Consider your ‘duty’ fulfilled. I’m out of here.”

Clint pushed past Phil and moved deeper into the camp before disappearing altogether. Phil deflated and took a seat on the log Clint had vacated. As he walked home, he felt horrible and empty inside. That had not been what he wanted to happen. Clint and his brother were supposed to have gone to loving families who would care for them. Phil had made many mistakes, but none like this. 

The next morning, Phil ventured into town hoping for news of Clint. When he stepped into the small local diner, he took a seat at the counter and ordered a cup of coffee. Taking a sip, he let himself blend into the background and listened. It didn’t take long for him to get news. The robbery Barney and Trickshot had planned had been foiled by one of their own and he was now in the hospital after taking a brutal beating. 

Phil was out of his seat, knowing it was Clint who had been injured. He hurried back to his cottage and immediately began dismantling it. He couldn’t stay here anymore. He had failed Clint not once, but twice now and Phil needed to be away from this place. The only place he knew he could find some peace was not here. He needed to go home.


	3. Ten Years Later

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Back in his homeland, Phil finds a surprise in his cabbage patch.

When Phil had come home 10 years earlier, he’d been welcomed back with open arms and only a little bit of teasing. Fury had taken one look at his friend and known something had happened. He hadn’t’ pushed, though it had been obvious he wanted to and had just watched with his one eye as Phil rebuilt his cottage amongst the birch trees. 

Phil was tending to his garden one afternoon when someone came running through the trees. Phil was shocked, with the help of Fury and Maria he had set a barrier on his land to keep people out. No one should have been able to find him. He stood there stunned for a moment before letting his magic rise. 

Before he could make them leave, the stranger looked up at him and Phil’s whole world just stopped. It was Clint, again. “Clint?”

Clint’s bright blue eyes widened as he realised it was Phil standing in front of him, and muttered an, “oh my god, you again,” before collapsing on Phil’s cabbages. 

Phil stared for a moment, sure this was some joke from Fury. When Clint didn’t disappear or move, Phil sighed sadly and closed the distance between them. As he got closer, he took in the dark clothes and weapons strapped to Clint and frowned. What was the meaning of this? Why was Clint so heavily armed? This was a peaceful place, what possible reason would there be for Clint to have shown up here?

It was only when he knelt down to try and wake Clint that Phil noticed the blood. Clint’s side was soaked with it and he was getting paler the longer Phil hesitated. Jolting into action, Phil slid his arms under Clint and carried him inside. 

He laid Clint down on his bed and got to work. Removing Clint’s shirt, Phil cursed in the old tongue. He did not have the skills to heal this. He was going to need help and he needed it fast. Wrapping a bandage around the wound, Phil rushed outside and began running to the fairy mound. 

Fury met him outside and stopped him mid-step. “What’s the rush, Coulson?”

“I need Banner, now.”

Phil tried to push past Fury but didn’t get far. “Phil, tell me why you need a healer when you live alone and are clearly fine and I'll send for him.”

Knowing there was no getting away now that Fury had a grip on his arms, Phil let it all spill out. “Clint, he...he...showed up. Crashed right into my garden. He’s hurt, please, Nick. You have to let Banner help him. I can’t heal him. It’s beyond my skills.”

“Clint? The kid from before?”

“Yes! Now get Banner. Clint needs help.”

“Phil, he’s a mortal. You know that, right? They die all the time.”

A low growl started in Phil’s throat. “I am very aware of that, but I will not fail him a third time. Now get Banner. Anything that happens, is on me. Just let me fix this.”

Fury signaled to someone nearby and forced Phil to look at him. “Fine, but you have to be prepared. The kid could still die. Don’t know why you’re wasting this much effort on a mortal, but it’s on you.”

Before he could answer, Banner showed up looking harried. “Sitwell said you needed me.”

“Yeah, go with Phil. He’s got an injured mortal in his cottage.”

To his credit, Banner said nothing just followed Phil home and into the cottage. He took one look at Clint and frowned. “Phil, you know he might die, right?”

“I know that. Please just try. I’ve failed him twice now, and I need to at least try.”

Banner got to work and after what felt like hours he stood and handed Phil a recipe. “He’s stable for now. There was a bullet lodged in his body. I’ve done everything I can, and now it’s up to you. This is a recipe for a potion that should help speed the healing process.”

Phil took the recipe and was relieved to see that he already had most of the ingredients. “Thank you.”

“Take care of him. There’s something special about this mortal.”

After Banner had left, Phil got to work brewing the potion. Clint continued to sleep, face contorting in pain every so often. While he waited, Phil talked to Clint, not caring if the archer could actually hear him. “I’m so sorry, Clint. I should have done more. I’m going to make this right. I promise.” Phil laughed. “And a promise from a fae is a serious thing. I’m going to make things better.”

Once the potion was finished, Phil ladled some into a mug and brought it over to the bed. Sitting on the edge, he watched Clint for a moment before waking him. “Clint? I need you to wake up for me. Please?”

Clint’s eyes opened and when he saw Phil, he jerked and tried to back away. “Where am I? Is this a dream? This can’t be real.”

“It’s very real. You were shot and somehow ended up on my land. Which should have been impossible, but that’s something for another day. Right now all you need to know is that the bullet is out, but you’re still healing and I need you to drink this. It will help.”

Clint took the mug and sniffed it. “This smells horrible.”

Phil shrugged. “Most medicines do. Now drink up. Then you can sleep some more.”

Clint drank the potion without any other protests and Phil was relieved. Hopefully, from now on, Clint would heal and then Phil could send him on his way. 

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Weeks passed and Clint healed and got better and once he was able to sit up in bed and stay awake for longer than a couple of hours, he started asking Phil questions. Phil did his best to answer them, wanting to be open and honest with Clint. The more time they spent together, the more Phil found himself wanting to keep Clint. 

“Phil, why haven’t you aged?”

Phil laughed. “I’ve aged. Trust me, I’ve aged. It’s just slower than mortals.”

Clint frowned. “What kind of fae are you?”

“Usually a solitary one.” 

That got a laugh out of Clint and after Phil had helped him to the table for dinner, Clint studied Phil before asking. “Why me?”

“What do you mean?”

“You told me you usually watch over kids, but I’m not a kid anymore. I’m almost 30 and even you were surprised to meet me again.”

Phil looked down at his food, trying to find an answer. “Honestly, I don’t know, Clint. You’re the first I’ve ever run into multiple times. All the children before, I’ve ever only observed and if I had to step in, that was it. It would be only the once.”

Clint smiled and nudged Phil with his foot under the table. “Guess I’m just special then.”

Phil blushed and changed the subject. The last thing he needed was Clint finding out how his feelings had become something more than friendly. Clint was beautiful and as his feelings grew, Phil knew he’d have to let Clint go soon. He was getting better every day and it was not fair to try and make him stay. 

Two months after he’d been injured, Clint was helping Phil in the garden when he dropped his shovel and grabbed Phil’s hand. Worried, Phil started to look Clint over for any sign of injury. “Clint? What’s wrong?”

“Phil, can I ask you something?”

“Of course. You know I’ll do my best to answer.”

Clint let out a huff. “Do you like me?”

“Clint? Of course, I like you. You’re my friend and it’s nice having company.”

Clint took a step closer to Phil and laced their fingers together. “Could you ever like me as more than a friend?”

Phil looked into Clint’s eyes and his heart leaped. There was so much yearning and want there and Phil felt it too. “Yes, Clint. I already do.”

Beaming, Clint leaned forward and brushed his lips over Phil’s. “Ask me to stay.”

Phil closed his eyes. “I can’t, Clint. You deserve to live a whole life. You deserve happiness. Not to be stuck here with me.”

Clint kissed Phil on the cheek. “About that, I was talking to Fury when he visited and he said there was a spell and it would only work if we were bound together and I want that Phil. I want that so badly.”

Cursing Fury, Phil cupped Clint’s cheek and brushed away the tear that had fallen. “Do you really, truly want that?”

“Yes, more than anything.”

Phil pressed his lips to Clint’s. “Then stay. Stay with me. Don’t leave me.”

Throwing his arms around Phil, Clint stole another kiss. “Yes, yes, yes.”

**Author's Note:**

> For more information about the type of sidhe Phil is, I used wikipedia and the page can be found here:  
> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghillie_Dhu


End file.
